


Vanity and Arrogance

by LadybugLies



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords, The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Enemies to Lovers, Imprisonment, M/M, Memory Loss, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:33:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 21,869
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26888923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadybugLies/pseuds/LadybugLies
Summary: The legend of The Four Sword had long fell into obscurity, until a king found ancient texts speaking of a powerful wind mage in the depths of his mothers' library. The monsters who fill his armies leave much to be desired, and a powerful ally could be the key to taking over the arrogant kingdom of Hyrule.Having been asleep for longer than he knows within his sword prison, the wind mage is happy to be released, but not happy enough to align himself with such a smug King.Thankfully the king brought insurance, a spell he had also found amongst the crumbling tomes. One that would weaken him until he could convince the mage to bow to him.However, he did not expect to find a small, oddly colored Hylian hidden underneath the layers of wind and dark magics.Neither did the mage himself.-----(tags may be added/changed as story progresses)
Relationships: Ganondorf/Vaati (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 19
Kudos: 62





	1. Freedom?

It was wonderful to stretch his wings again. The sunlight trickling down through the dense canopy of the forest warmed his form of dark magic wherever it touched. It had been so long since he was last sealed, the fresh air was invigorating!

When he finally opened his eye he realized he must have been locked away longer than he thought. Time was weird within the sword, keeping your senses muffled and your thoughts dim. The sanctuary that was his prison had always been in a state of decay, the forest decorating the stones with moss and vine, but as he looked around, the wind demon found only broken rock. It was a pity, the mural that once held his image was barely recognizable in such a time battered state. He hoped his palace was in better condition.

The sound of someone clearing their throat drew the demon out of his musings and he turned around with a lazy flap of his mighty wings. A man stood before the sword’s pedestal, though the sword seemed to be still intact. No fragmented heroes to deal with yet, at least.

“Hohoho~” Vaati chuckled, looking down at the curious mortal. “And who, might I ask, dares to stand so confidently before the great Wind Mage, hm~?”

“I am Ganondorf, King of the Gerudo.” The man said, staring him down with a charismatic smirk. “My magic has released you from your prison. You are in my debt.”

Gerudo… Vaati had heard of such a people once or twice but had never seen one in person. A desert tribe, forever in a teetering relationship with the neighboring Hyrule. It would explain the man’s large size. The stature of the Gerudo were certainly the subject of many a tale.

His attire, too, certainly spoke of a man more accustomed to the hotter temperatures of the sand. Dressed in dark browns and blacks, his loose robe did nothing to mask the muscles underneath. Though the demon would have not guessed he was a king if it were not for the elaborate gold headpiece entwined within his vibrant, carefully twisted and styled red hair. Perhaps opulence was not something the man valued. Vaati could not relate.

“Debt, you say?” He cooed, looking down at the so-called king with amusement, “I’ll repay my debt by not killing you where you stand, hm? Does that not seem fair?”

“I’m afraid it does not,” The Gerudo—Ganondorf was it? Bit of a mouthful—shifted his stance. A trident made of pure black metal appeared in his hand. “I have freed you with the purpose of serving in my army. Your strength will be of great value to my takeover of Hyrule.”

“Serve? Oh hohohohoho~” Vaati’s eye narrowed, “I serve no one, Gerudo. Begone before I change my mind about killing you.”

Ganondorf clicked his tongue. “I had hoped you would see the benefit of serving under a powerful leader. No matter.”

The prongs of the trident began to glow. It seemed this Gerudo was not planning on leaving without a fight.

“Oooh?” Vaati flapped his wings, sending threatening gusts through the clearing. “I suppose destroying you would be a nice warm up~”

Ganondorf’s eyes flashed as he swung his trident, sending bolts of energy towards the demon. Vaati dodged easily with the wind, spinning and sending back a flurry of bats back.

With a twirl of the trident Ganondorf easily dispatched the swarm, having to jump back as Vaati followed with balls of lightning. The Gerudo king was faster than his bulk would suggest, dodging every blast and cutting burst of wind the mage sent his way. The rest of the sanctuary was not as lucky. The last bits of rock blasted and scorched with lightning and fire as the wind demon grew more impatient with his target’s agility.

Ganondorf sent back his own volleys of lightning with a similar lack of success as Vaati swooped through the air. Snarling, the demon summoned more bats, this time surrounding him. There was a pause as the bats’ eyes glowed before powerful lasers rained down on the Gerudo king. The man dodged behind the last pedestal, which was blasted to pieces. He took the opportunity to use his trident as a bat, launching the fragments of stone back at the floating mage. They hit their mark, Vaati screeching in pain as he closed his eye against the onslaught.

With the demon distracted, Ganondorf muttered a spell under his breath. With a spin and flick of his trident a beam of gold light pierced through the wind mage and wrapped around him.

The pain was indescribable. Vaati writhed as his shrieking grew more inhuman. Everywhere the golden light touched, his form swathed in dark magic flickered and burned away like smoke in a whirlwind. His wings beat frantically, trying to keep himself airborne, but he could not fully control them.

He hit the ground with a wail, eye prying open to see the Gerudo King looming over him. When had he gotten so big? His form… his being, it was evaporating away! With a final, desperate cry, the wind mage shot out a shadowy claw, slashing Ganondorf’s face with the last force he could muster.

The king stumbled back a step, hand flying up to the cut that now decorated the side of his face. It was deep, and already oozing blood. He was lucky the creature did not hit his eye. Should not have counted the wind mage out so soon.

In moments, the shrinking form of the demon stopped writhing, though thick tendrils of smoke continued to burn away. It was already much smaller than Ganondorf had expected. The spell he had found in his mothers’ library had only mentioned it locked away magic ability. He had hoped he would not have to use such tactics, but he had no interest in killing the wind mage so quickly. He could still be of use, if only he could be convinced.

Ganondorf leaned against one of the remaining chunks of stone still standing, dabbing at the cut with spare cloth. The spell was sure taking its time to stabilize… but at least it was not shrinking anymore. A light breeze blew through the sanctuary, fresh and crisp, unlike the dark winds the mage created. That was all it took to blow away the last scraps of dark smoke lingering on the ground. What was left caught the king by surprise.

Laying there prone on the moss-covered stones was a young Hylian man, dressed in various shades of purple and red. His light lavender hair fell about him almost delicately. Nothing about his appearance matched with the harsh voice of the wind demon before. If anything, his delicate features made him look more like a fairy than a creature made of pure dark magics.

Curious…

Ganondorf crouched down next to the small man, hand brushing his hair away from his face and neck. A golden choker sat snuggly against pale violet skin. The spell had stabilized.

With a wave of his hand the dark trident vanished, leaving his hands empty to pick up the strange Hylian. He would need to hurry; he did not know how long the spell would knock him out for.

At least he was light.


	2. New Housing

Vaati awoke in the dark, torchlight flickering dimly on dark stone. His whole body ached. His thoughts were hazy. Where… What…? He closed his eye, trying to focus. Surely being trapped in the four sword for so long this time had not addled his mind that much.

A face emerged in his mind, memories of his recent fight flooding back to him.

Right, that smug male Gerudo. That bastard did something to him…

His eye fluttered open again, this time to take in his surroundings. Torches, stone, iron bars, he was laying on a meager cot of some sort, and there a basin on the corner that was probably the source of the stale water smell that permeated the entire area. A dungeon. He had been thrown in a damn dungeon.

Vaati groaned, startling himself to full awareness when the sound vibrated through his body instead of his usual magically projected voice. He tried stretching out a wing to right himself, but that burning sensation returned. With a hiss he stopped, relieved when the burning went away. Ugh, he felt so weak, so… heavy.

He shifted his head before wincing, the movement sending a throbbing pain through his temple, but the new angle gave him a better look at the rest of him. Arms shackled together lay beside him. Not his powerful shadow arms. These were small, thin, clad in purple fabric. In disbelief, the demon tried to move the fingers of such foreign appendages. There! They moved!

It took a moment for the implication to set in. His body… He was in a human body?? How? Sure, he vaguely remembered shrinking during the battle as the pain of the strange golden magic consumed him but… It turned him human?! Impossible! What the hell kind of spell did that Gerudo put on him?

After some struggle he managed to get into a sitting position on the rough dungeon cot. These odd, heavy limbs were hard to control. Sluggish. How could mortals move around in these damn meat sacks? He dreaded having to learn to walk, but every time he tried to summon a scrap of magic his neck burned.

Movement in the corner of his eye caused the mage to jump. He had not noticed the bokoblin crouched in the hallway outside the cell. With a grunt, the creature got up and hobbled over to the metal bars, looking at him and sniffing the air. Vaati sent him a glare, but the bokoblin did not seem to care, hurrying off with a pleased cry after he identified whatever he was looking for.

“Tch,” The mage let out an irritated sound as he leaned back against the damp wall. His body hurt too much to do much of anything but sit there. He practiced lifting his new legs one at a time, wiggling the weird toes at the end of his feet. At least this form had the decency of coming with clothes, not that he needed them in his true form. He had never seen a human naked and he did not plan to. Weird hairless apes…

After a while, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed down the stone halls. It certainly was not the bokoblin from earlier, and he was proven right when that tall, smug Gerudo from before emerged from the darkness.

Ugh, what had his name been again? He had not paid attention before their fight.

“Good to see you awake,” The man stood in front of the bars, but seemed to have no intention of entering.

He certainly was an impressive figure, for a human. Much taller than your average Hylian fool. Looked like he could kill a bokoblin with his bare hands, too. Was that why he turned him into this? To keep him weak and easily overpowered? Coward.

“Forget how to speak, wind demon?”

Vaati’s lips drew back in a smile that was more a baring of teeth. “Just thinking about how I want to kill you.”

“Somehow I don’t think that will be any time soon.” The Gerudo gave him a matching smile.

“What did you do to me?”

The Gerudo gestured vaguely, “I sealed your magic. The gold ring around your neck is the physical manifestation of the spell.”

Vaati reached up with his tightly bound hands to touch the warm metal. Ah, so that was what was burning. “And it needed to turn me human because?”

“Pardon?”

He glared at the man, “You know what I mean. Why do I look like this?”

The Gerudo was silent for a moment, placing a hand on his shin and looking at him curiously. It made Vaati uncomfortable. “I was going to ask you.”

“ _Huh?_ ”

“This body was not caused by the spell,” He leaned back against the stone, arms crossed. “I was just as surprised when the winds faded and there on the ground was some… odd purple Hylian. The stories have no mention of you once being mortal.”

“Lies,” Vaati spat, not believing it for a second, “I was never mortal, you just want something weak to push around, don’t you?”

“I’m not lying,” The Gerudo smirked, “But I admit it is a bonus.”

“Why don’t you come in and I’ll show you who’s _weak_.”

The man barked out a laugh before stepping forward, “Oh? Are you really in a position to challenge me right now?”

Vaati’s glare narrowed. “I won’t be stuck here for long. Your pathetic shackles can’t bind me here.”

“Hm I wonder…” He hummed, the amusement in the man’s gold eyes pissing him off more. Pulling out a ring of keys, the Gerudo unlocked and opened the cell door. “Prove it. Your legs aren’t bound.”

With a snarl Vaati pushed off from the cot, only to lose his balance instantly from the force. He swore, only barely managing to not fall after some quick flailing and feet placement. His legs were trembling from disuse, he must have looked pathetic. Anger quickly bit back the shame as he straightened his back and glared straight into the Gerudo’s eyes. He took a confident step forward, then another. It was shaky, wobbly, and not dignified in the slightest, but the goddesses be damned if he was going to lose this stupid little game.

His captor waited patiently. Not even a snarky quip came from his lips as Vaati worked his way slowly to the door. Finally, the mage stood in front of the door and the giant man, glaring up at him. The Gerudo’s height was even more intimidating from this angle. Damn this tiny body the man cursed him into.

“There,” He forced down a wince as his voice revealed how out of breath he was from the effort.

The Gerudo hummed, sizing him up with an entertained smirk, “Not bad.” He then lightly pushed the mage. Vaati shouted and fell back onto the stones with a thud. “But not good enough.”

The iron door was closed and locked as Vaati groaned. He had knocked his head slightly when he fell, and the headache had returned full force. “Bastard…”

“Be happy I let you have the freedom to move around at all.” Vaati glanced up at the dangerous tone of his captor’s voice.

“… How long do you plan on keeping me here?” The mage grunted, moving to a sitting position.

“Until you realize who your king is.”

“Tch,” Vaati snarled, “I bow to no mortal.”

A smug grin curled on the Gerudo’s lips. “Doesn’t seem that way from my angle.”

Vaati bared his teeth, but from his seat on the floor he could not think of much of a comeback.

The man hummed, gazing down at him with an intensity that caused the mage to fight down a shiver. “Gold looks good on you.” He turned before Vaati could raise an eyebrow. “Perhaps a few weeks down here will change you tune, hm? Enjoy your stay.”

And with that his captor left, leaving Vaati alone in the dim dungeon with only his thoughts and his rage to stew in.

That bastard would beg for death once he got his hands on him…

…

Shit, he didn’t get his name again.


	3. Tested Limits

It did not even take a week for Vaati to conclude that humans were _disgusting_ creatures. Second only perhaps to Moblins and Bokoblins in their ability to gather and produce filth over time.

Ugh, he could tell he smelt horrid, even with the other ghastly scents mingling in the air.

The need for sustenance was also horrifically troublesome, and the meager rations his Bokoblin guard brought him barely stopped his insides from feeling like they were eating away at his own flesh. Water was easier to choke down, though he quickly learned he should ration it over the day or end up with a throat that felt like sandpaper.

Most days it was merely scraps of bread with some sort of butter. Palatable, but the bread often left him more thirsty than he started. Good days brought him a bit of salted meat with it, difficult to chew but it at least had flavor.

It was difficult to tell time down in the dungeon. Only his rare meals marked a passage in time.

There was little to occupy his mind. He paced, when energy allowed. The rations he was given were clearly small to keep him tired and weak, and often he felt too lightheaded to do much more than curl up on his cot or the floor.

Time passed. He vaguely wondered if the smug king had forgotten about him. Left him here to waste away in this damn mortal body.

Would he die? Did this spell around his neck make it possible for him to die? Perhaps if this body perished he would be released, powers renewed and able to unleash his wrath on the Gerudo bastard who did this to him.

Somehow, he felt that was not the case.

He tried to stop thinking about it.

Something jabbed Vaati in the ribs. He was pulled out of a strange dream of clovers and grass as tall as trees. It seemed he fell asleep against the wall.

Another jab, then two, followed by a snort from above.

Vaati groaned and opened his eye, batting away the offending stick. A Bokoblin, no, two Bokoblins and a large Moblin leered down at him.

He was up on his feet in an instant, trying to ignore how lightheaded he felt from the sudden transition. What were these creatures doing in his cell? Glancing at the open cell door brought him part of an answer. A Bokoblin, the one he recognized as his jailer, was snickering at the entrance, bouncing about with a set of keys like a child in a toy shop.

That buffoon let these filthy monsters into his cell?? For what purpose? He glared down the group before him, even if the Moblin was much taller than his current form.

“What in Farore’s name do you want,” He spat at the monsters.

It only seemed to amuse them. One Bokoblin grabbed a length of his hair and yanked while the other poked his ribs with the stick again. Curse his sealed magic, he could barely understand the low-lives’ grunts and huffs like this. As far as he could tell, they were taking great amusement in how small their king’s capture was.

Vaati snarled, slapping away both Bokoblins, or trying to at least. They didn’t seem much affected by his weak attacks, dragging him away from the wall to poke and prod at him with more freedom.

“Let go!” He grunted, grabbing the one’s stick and trying to pull it away. With a kick to the monster’s shin he was able to claim his prize and swing it around, but a harsh tug to his hair knocked him off balance.

He fell and the monsters laughed, jumping around and kicking the air out of him. The mage tried to curl up to keep them away, but a large hand grabbed his leg and pulled him up into the air. The Moblin.

Vaati flailed, trying to kick the damn pig monster, but he could not reach. The Moblin’s deep chuckle barely reached his ears as blood rushed to his head from being upside down. He screamed as he was suddenly swung, back and head hitting the wall with a sickening crack.

His vision flooded with black and stars as he gulped in air. His head throbbed. Everything hurt. And those damn monsters were closing in on him again.

“You think… you’re funny,” The mage managed to growl out, shakily pulling himself up against the wall. “Traitorous bastards… I’ve commanded legions of you in the past…”

All that got in return was a deep laugh and several cackles. Vaati was shaking. In exhaustion or anger he was not sure. Probably both. The collar on his neck burned in warning as his magic threatened to come forth.

“Stay away from me.” He was already backed up against a wall as they advanced on him. Were they just going to keep playing with him until they got bored? Something would break by then if the Moblin had any say in it. As if on cue, the Moblin grabbed him by the hair and pulled him up into the air to smirk at him.

“I said stay AWAY!” The collar glowed brightly as a whirlwind slammed into the monsters surrounding him. The Bokoblins shrieked, being picked up and flung about the room by the force of the magic winds. It burned. The collar burned. But he wanted them OUT!

The Moblin grunted, but stood his ground. His smaller companions were not so lucky, slamming into the walls and bars until they left blood in their wake. Vaati snarled, the wind growing in power until it could cut flesh on contact.

The smell of burning skin clogged his nose. The taste of blood filled his mouth.

Squealing in pain from the slashes of the wind, the Moblin dropped Vaati like a dead weight. He retreated, gathering his now unconscious companions and running. The Bokoblin guard who had witnessed the fight had long fled.

The winds faded away, leaving Vaati quivering on the ground. He coughed, blood splattering the floor.

He couldn’t breathe.

_He couldn’t breathe._

The mage dry heaved and weakly coughed up more blood. He was going to die! He was going to die from asphyxiation by his own hand!

A choked sob ran through him. Dying from his own stupidity… well at least it wasn’t by the hands of those disgusting pig creatures. He could not move at all after that little display, so it wasn’t like he could go try to find help. Darkness was creeping in the corners of his vision… he didn’t have time.

Suddenly there was a wet pop from deep in his throat and air filled his lungs. By some miracle he could breathe again, but only slowly. He feared breathing too harshly would cause the hole to close up again. If it was a true danger he didn’t know, but he didn’t want to test his luck anymore.

Slowly, carefully, he kept his focus on breathing. His body was tired, and he could feel unconsciousness was not too far away. The mage could only hope no complications would hit him in his sleep.

Vaguely, past the loud thumping of his heart in his ears. He thought he heard footsteps. Human footsteps.

Perhaps it was just his imagination.


	4. Moving Up

Vaati woke up to find he had not been moved. Had he truly not been found since the incident? How long had he been out?

Swallowing hurt, but the wound he caused himself was not bleeding anymore. For now, at least. He would have to be careful.

It was a struggle to sit up. His whole being inside and out ached. His head throbbed. He might has well have been run over by a team of Armos he hurt so bad.

But he was alive. That was something, he guessed.

The world spun as he tried to look around and closed his eye, praying the motion would go away. He didn’t need MORE nausea on top of everything else.

When he finally felt like the world had stopped dancing, he reopened his eye. The cell appeared to be untouched, with the exception that the door was now closed once again. It HAD been open when he passed out, right? Now he wasn’t sure.

The click of heels on stone was new, though.

Emerging from the direction his Bokoblin jailer had usually come from came a tall, tan woman with her red hair cut in a short bob. Her stature and long nose, similar to the smug King, marked her as Gerudo. Her features were more delicate than the man’s, but no less fierce. Typically, he preferred the softer features of Hylian maidens, but he had to admit the Gerudo were just as beautiful.

Vaati watched her with confusion as she set a tray of food down in the cell. It was only then she seemed to notice he was awake and said something he could not understand under her breath.

“Eat,” Her Hyrulean was very accented.

He blinked at her before slowly moving towards the tray. In all honesty he wasn’t quite hungry after everything that had happened, but he could at least use some water. To his surprise, the meal wasn’t his usual rations. On his tray was a bowl filled with a decent serving of some sort of soup. It smelled amazing, yet his stomach churned. He hoped he could keep it down.

His hands were shaky, but he managed to pick up the bowl and take a small sip. The second the broth hit his throat the searing pain from before came back. He barely managed to put the bowl back down before being sent into a coughing fit.

A hand at his shoulder made him look up in surprise, hands still covering his uncontrollable coughing. The Gerudo woman looked at him in what he thought was concern. Her expression had been so severe the whole time it was hard to tell.

When the coughing died down, she motioned for him to look at her and open his mouth. He obeyed, and she took his chin to look inside with better light. Her free hand moved down to touch the collar to try and move it aside, but it stuck to Vaati’s skin, making him hiss in pain.

Clicking her tongue, she released him and stood up. She hurried away, heels echoing down the hall.

Vaati slowly blinked after her, unsure of what was going on. She had been smart enough to lock the door behind her, at least. Not that he could run away in this state.

It did not take long for the clacking to return, the woman now holding a small vial. She opened it and handed the vial to him through the bars.

“Drink.” She said, making a drinking motion.

Vaati’s eye narrowed at the vial. It was filled with some sort of red liquid. Not the most appetizing looking drink he had ever seen.

The Gerudo tutted as he hesitated. “Potion. Will heal you. Drink.”

A potion? Oh. Yes, he had seen these sold by shops before. At some point. Taking a breath of resignation, Vaati tilted his head back and knocked back the potion.

The effect was almost instantaneous. It coated his throat with a cool, numbing sensation, and the pain quickly subsided to almost nothing. Even the tugging of skin underneath the gold collar seemed to stop. The mage sighed in relief. It was the best feeling he had felt in weeks.

“Now try to eat.”

Vaati merely nodded and reached for the soup bowl again. It may have been a small potion, but he already could feel some of his strength return. He sipped at the soup nervously, sighing in relief when there was no pain, just the warmth of the broth. The mage drank the soup with more vigor. It was delicious! He could almost cry.

The woman tutted again, “Not so fast. Hurt your stomach.”

He ignored her, even as his stomach started to cramp in protest. Letting out a satisfied sigh, he set the bowl back on the tray. The Gerudo did not take it, only moving back to lean against the wall of the dungeon hallway.

Vaati cleared his throat, “Where… is the other guard.”

“Dead.”

“Oh.” Quite a straightforward answer… He certainly would not miss him.

“Finish eating.”

He blinked up at her in confusion as she pointed to an object on the tray he had not really noticed. It was some sort of… spiny red and green fruit?

“Voltfruit. Good for you.”

The mage picked up the odd fruit. He had never seen anything quite like it before. Following his new guard’s instructions, he was able to peel it and bite into the flesh of the fruit. His eyes widened. It was so sweet! And juicy! This time he managed to eat slower, savoring every bite. Oh, it was so good! But why was he being so spoiled now?

It was suspicious, going from such meager scraps to this. Was he being buttered up? The King trying a new tactic to get him to submit? Well it would not work.

“King Ganondorf wishes to see you.”

A blink, and he looked up at the guard, swallowing the last bit of voltfruit. Ganondorf! That was his name! With a snort, he tossed the fruit peel onto the tray. “He can come down whenever he damn well wants.”

The woman frowned, displeased, “Get up. He wishes to see you _now_.”

“To gloat that I got beat up by some of his lowest minions? No thanks.”

“Tch…” She muttered something in what must have been her native tongue before unlocking and opening the door. For a moment Vaati thought she was going to hit him, but she instead grabbed his filthy shirt and pulled him up to his feet. “Stubborn mage… Come. Now.”

His legs shook as he reacquainted himself with his stupid human legs. They were weak still, but the potion had healed him enough so they did not feel like they would collapse under him at any second. He blinked as his guard clipped something to his shackles. A lead? His lips curled into a snarl. Great, he was going to be paraded around like an animal. It is not like he could run. Despite the heels she wore, Vaati has the suspicion she would have no trouble chasing him.

The Gerudo gave the lead an experimental tug, raising an eyebrow at him. It was like she was daring him to try. With a huff, Vaati carefully made his way out of the cell. At least now he could walk without making an absolute fool of himself.

He hoped wherever they were going was not far. He didn’t want to test his luck.

“Come, come, Voe.” Vaati looked at her strangely at the odd word, but she was not looking his way anymore. She set up a forgiving pace for his weak legs as she led him down the corridor. He apparently had been decently far in the dungeons, as it took them a good minute to reach a door. He supposed that explained how stale the air was in his cell.

“Hm…” His guard hummed thoughtfully before speaking, “Close your eyes. It is daylight.”

He blinked at her for a moment, but the searing strip of light that burst from the door as she opened it quickly made him comply. Heat hit him like slap in the face, causing him to shiver. He had not realized how cold the dungeon was.

The Gerudo mercifully waited as his eyes adjusted to the light before moving on. The sun was so bright he still had to squint, but as least he could see the ground in front of him. Goddess the heat… The heat was oppressive. It had weight to it and he feared this tiny, stupid body may be crushed by the sheer glare of the sun above.

He had been so concentrated on moving one foot in front of the other he barely got a look at the vast desert around them before he was pulled into another building. The shade was very welcome.

What was not welcome was the long set of stairs that lay before him. His guard looked down at him, already up a few steps which made her appear even taller, with a mildly amused expression. She waited patiently, though, which Vaati appreciated. She was oddly kind for a jailer working under the orders of his enemy. Still, he sent her a weak glare as he took a breath and followed her.

Goddesses above, how tall was this place? Vaati was winded before they even got to the first landing. Stairs, what an evil invention. He had never missed his magic as intensely as he did right then. He made a mental promise never to take flying for granted ever again.

“Tired already?” His guard smirked, “Our destination is still farther.”

“Ugh just…” He bent over, trying to catch his breath. “One minute…”

The Gerudo hummed and leaned her back against the wall. Vaati shuffled over as well as a group of Moblins walked past. He eyed hem warily, but they paid him no mind, grunting to each other in their strange pseudo language. The way his guard watched the monsters pass, she clearly did not care for them either. At least they had that in common.

Finally, the mage stood up straight and nodded to her, they were already this far, might as well keep going. She led him down several stone halls, staring straight ahead and never giving anyone who passed them a second glance. This whole place was filled with monsters. From the distant commotion and traffic, Vaati supposed this was a living area for the more humanoid monsters. He could have sworn he saw a Lizalfos looking at him through a doorway, but it might have been a shadow.

Finally, they came to more stairs and the mage steeled himself for another long climb.

As they ascended, the rough stonework gave way to polished and painted stone. The air became crisp and lightly scented with various spices. This time Vaati did not need to pause as long at the landing and they continued without trouble.

More Gerudo women began to cross their paths, some even stopping to speak to his guard in that same lovely language he could not understand. None gave him more than a glance. He could sense disgust in their gazes, but he could not bring himself to do more than glare. Compared to this lovely smelling place he likely looked and smelled like he came out of a sewer.

_They were all so… tall._ Was the very intelligent thing that came to his mind first. Before the King confronted him, he had never had any interaction with the race before, just heard tales and hearsay. They truly were a warrior race, just a glance at their toned bodies proved that in spades. Each one looked like they could break this pathetic little Hylian body with no more effort than one would break a twig.

His face felt hot for some reason, a different hot than the oppressive desert sun. Some of the Gerudo were looking at him oddly and his guard looked like she was about to laugh. How much farther did they have to go? He wished his guide would hurry all of a sudden.

With a few words in Gerudo, his guard finally led him out of the populated area. She looked back at him with an amused smirk that made it impossible for him to not look away from. Embarrassing. He was not quite sure what he was embarrassed about, but that must have been the feeling that had sunk so deep in his stomach. They had caught him staring like a fool…

“Not long now, little Voe.”

The odd word still confused him, and he was not sure if the added diminutive made it more insulting or not. “Vaati.”

“Hm?” It was her turn to look confused.

“My name is Vaati, not Voe.”

She blinked at him for a moment before she burst out laughing. “Oh, oh no! No no! Voe is not name… means, ah… close to your… male.”

“… Oh.” He supposed that made more sense than being a name. “I’m not usually this short, your king did this to me.”

“Hoooh?” She continued up what he hoped was the final set of stairs. It did not sound like she believed him. Considering the state she had found him in… he couldn’t blame her. He was sure he looked pathetic.

True to her word, though, after the stairs it did not take more than a minute to end up at their destination. Or at least he assumed the wooden door they ended up stopping at was the destination. His guard took a moment to pull out her keys and unlock the door before leading him inside.

It was… some sort of seating area? Living space? A comfortable looking chair was nestled up against the far wall, next to a medium sized table and a large open window looking out over the rest of the fortress. On the other side of the room was a desk and even a small bookshelf. Another door was left open, and seemed to lead to a… bedroom? He could not see it well from where he stood at the entrance, but it reminded him much of the living spaces he set up for the maidens he would take up to his castle.

Sigh… his castle… Was it even still up there somewhere?

Vaati nearly jumped out of his skin when his jailer took hold of his shackles and removed them. He stared blankly at his wrists, dirty and red from rubbing against the metal for so many weeks, before looking up at the woman with a questioning look.

“What- “

“You will stay here from now on.”

“I thought your King wanted to see me.”

She nodded, “He will visit later. He wanted you to be moved as soon as possible, first.”

He studied her face warily, but could not find deception, though there was some amusement in her words. She motioned towards the doorway that led to the bedroom.

“Bath has been drawn for you. Should be warm. New clothes in bedroom. Leave dirty clothes by door and it will be washed.”

Vaati stood, baffled by this new information. Better food, better accommodations, what… what was going on? This was too much too sudden. What was the bastard King thinking? Was this some sort of manipulation? A ploy to get him comfortable and more susceptible to suggestion? To gain favor with him? Like he would forget the bastard left him in that stinking dungeon for weeks and let his monsters play around with him.

By the time he pulled out of his thoughts long enough to quiz his guard, she was gone. He tried the door. Locked. Unsurprising. This was just a higher quality prison. Nothing more.

Still… he may as well enjoy the bath.

The bedroom was as cozy as the main area. A large bed was the prominent feature, though Vaati considered it may only be big looking to him. Could be completely normal for this race of giants. Other than the bed there was a small dresser and the opening to the bathroom.

It was a large bathroom. Filled with your basic necessities and entirely too many oils and soaps. The bath was invitingly large, inset into the floor for ease of entry. There was a spout that poked out high on the wall the same color as the faucets of the bath. Perhaps it created a little waterfall for you to stand under? That sounded lovely. The bath was steaming, and the whole room was filled with the sweet scent of some bath fragrance.

He was suddenly acutely aware of how dirty he was.

Struggling out of his clothes, Vaati nearly jumped into the warm, steaming waters. He groaned, sinking into the bath until only his face breached the surface. The heat sunk into his tires, sore muscles almost instantly. He had never felt such a blissful feeling. Maybe there were some perks to this mortal body thing…

He had half a mind to stay like that for the rest of the day, Gerudo King be dammed, until a piece of wet hair stuck to his face.

Right… this hair. For most of his time in this body he had tried to ignore it. It was strange, long, and did not seem to have any purpose other than ending up in his mouth every chance it could. Sighing, Vaati got up, stretching out for a comb he had spotted earlier and began the arduous task of detangling the whole thing.

It took ages of careful, painful picking, but once he got it washed up and covered in some… hair lotion? The label looked like it said it was for hair. Whatever it was it made his hair feel surprisingly soft and smooth. Once that was taken care of it was time for the rest of the body.

The lighting was much better in the bathroom than in the dungeon, and for the first time… he really looked at his skin. It was pale, under all the grime, but the Gerudo King had been right. It was a lovely shade of lavender. He turned his hand around in the light, running his fingers over the lines of his palm. Strange… he had never seen a Hylian with this shade of skin either. He had never seen _anything_ with this shade of skin before.

What… was he? Did it just take this color because his dark magic body was slightly tinged purple?

That… Sure. He would go with that for now.

Washing the rest of his body was awkward, to say the least. He wanted to wash all the filth and grime that had built up completely, and some parts were just more difficult to reach or scrub hard. Soon enough the bath had grown dark with the filth he had managed to clean off thanks to the many soaps by the bath.

Rinsing off was going to be a problem, though, so Vaati scooted closer to the faucets to see how to change the water. After a bit of fiddling he got the overhead pipe to shoot out warm water, though he initially let out a quite undignified squeal when it first drenched him in cold water.

He set the bath to drain as he used the new water to rinse off his body and hair, eventually just standing there, enjoying the feeling of the stream run over his face. The mage could not help but smile. He felt refreshed, new, at peace in a way he had not been for ages.

Pity a knock at the door had to bring it to an end.

Sighing, Vaati turned off the water and pulled over one of the plush drying cloths to start wringing out his hair. He sat on the edge of the bath, really not feeling like hurrying. Besides, it’s not like he could-

As if on cue he heard the door unlock and open.

“Tch.” Vaati grumbled, calling out to the intruder. “I’m not done!”

“Hmm.” A deep voice responded. As expected, it was Ganondorf. “You sound better.”

“No thanks to you or your minions.” Vaati snapped back.

To his surprise, the King seemed to actually hesitate at that. “Hn… Take your time.”

He _would_.


	5. Ghost in the Mirror

Vaati dried himself off before running the comb he had set aside through his hair once more. No large tangles anymore. He switched to a soft bristled brush he found next to the bath mirror. It was steamed up from all the hot water, blurring his image into a wash of purples.

Curious, he reached out to wipe the condensation from the glass, but before he could the sound of a chair creaking under someone’s weight reminded him of who was waiting for him outside. He would have to deal with his captor sooner or later… but for now he could at least waste his time.

Vaati wandered out of the bathroom into the neighboring bed chamber as he lightly brushed out his damp hair. He sure had a lot of it. At least now it felt nice. The Gerudo woman who led him here said there were new clothes in the dresser. He supposed it was only polite to cover up, and practical since this body had so many soft bits. Said dresser was not filled with much. The first shirt he found was much too big, likely fitted to the only other man in this place. Useless to him unless he wanted a dress. Could be a decent night shirt though.

Tossing that aside he rummaged around the small selection, finally finding a thin top that could possibly fit. It was white, or at least it had been in the past. Now it was more of a light tan with signs of wear and tear. Nothing unseemly, just a bit of fraying at the edges. Clearly a hand me down of some sort. Perhaps a child’s old shirt? It wasn’t like these giants would have any ready clothing for someone his size. Still, he put it on. The sleeves were loose and billowy, with ties at the end to close them off. He could already tell it would feel much nicer to wear in the sun than that heavy, tighter fit tunic he was found in. It was open in the front and for a few moments he was not sure how or if it was supposed to close. The Gerudo people did not seem against showing off skin. Vaati, though, was not sure how comfortable he was with the idea, not to mention that it just did not look right with the fabric dangling down. After some fiddling, he figured out it was supposed to wrap across and tie on the side.

One item of clothing down.

Ganondorf huffed impatiently in the next room but did not speak.

Thankfully finding pants that fit was a bit easier. He suspected once again the pants were children’s clothing, but he couldn’t find it in him to be quite bitter about that. For now. A red pair drew his eye. They were similar in style to the ones he was found in but embellished in gold embroidery at the cuffs and waistband. Quite lovely, and a nice balance to the very plain shirt he wore.

Now fully dressed, Vaati sighed in annoyance. He supposed he could not delay it any longer. With a final check to make sure his new clothes were all in place, he headed out into the main chamber.

Ganondorf had been staring out the window, turning his head to the small mage when he finally entered. He was also in casual clothing, a loose top that only covered one shoulder and dark pants of a similar style to the rest of the Gerudo in this fortress. Vaati was surprised to see the man actually accessorized this time, his free arm adorned in gold bracelets that matched the crown woven into his hair.

“What’s the meaning of all this?” Vaati snapped, crossing his arms in irritation.

Ganondorf looked him up and down for a moment, taking in his new attire, before speaking. “What do you mean?”

“Tch,” What an irritating man, “You seemed plenty happy leaving me down in that dungeon before. What changed?”

The King hummed to himself, scratching at his beard. “Consider it compensation for my minions’ behavior.”

Vaati’s eyes narrowed. “Pity, then?”

“No. It was an oversight on my part.” Ganondorf’s eyes met his, “I had not considered them intelligent enough to disobey me. Their behavior was unacceptable, and they have been disposed of. To make sure that does not happen again, you have been moved here.”

He didn’t believe him for one second. “And this has nothing to do with getting be comfortable before threatening to put me back down there, hm?”

“I wouldn’t say that.” Ganondorf had the gall to look amused. “A bonus, perhaps.”

“Fabulous,” Vaati’s voice was flat, “Is that all?”

“I was hoping to negotiate.”

“Pity. My stance hasn’t changed.”

“Then perhaps you would be willing to answer some questions instead?” The king shifted, pulling what was barely a scrap of an ancient scroll out of his loose sleeve. “There is very little information about you… And I find you curious.”

He offered the scroll. Vaati looked down at it with a carefully tailored bored expression before snatching it away. It was old. Brittle. Hylian script fading on the stained paper. His thoughts wandered back to how long he had been imprisoned. He was certain the last time he was free knowledge of him was not so… obscure.

His eyes scanned the decipherable text. A vague account of a wind demon who once roamed the lands of Hyrule, sending it into chaos with its powerful magic. How it could only be sealed away by the power of four as one. Delightfully cryptic. And, to his surprise, a claim he kidnapped young maidens to keep in his castle in the sky for his own amusement. What an odd detail to remember him by. It was certainly true; he had swept many a maiden off her feet in times past. The heroes of the sword always ruined his courting at inopportune times. Terrible timing, really. It was like they had a knack for knowing when he planned his gestures of affection. The time they had crashed his wedding to the Hyrule princess didn’t count, though. He had announced that one. He could admit when he made a mistake.

“You found me with this scrap of garbage?”

“And additional research. The mention of four as one led to some leads that brought me to the four sword.” Ganondorf gestured with his hand, “After that it was figuring out the location of this fabled sanctuary that was the difficult part.”

“Seems like a lot of work for little profit.”

“I do not see it that way.” Ganondorf’s eyes shone, “I have plans for that blasted Hyrule. The armies of monsters I now command was one part. Finding powerful monsters of legend to aid me was another.”

Vaati hummed, “So you thought me a monster?”

“Demon is not exactly the most descriptive word in our world.”

“Hmph.” He tossed the scroll back to the king. “There is not much to say about me. I am blessed with the powers of wind and storms. I can and have sent Hyrule spiraling into chaos at a whim. My castle was grander than Hyrule could ever hope to build.”

“And the maidens?” A smirk danced across Ganondorf’s lips, Vaati wanted to smack him.

“Something wrong with a ruler wanting a queen?”

Ganondorf hummed, getting up from the chair. “I suppose not.” He closed the distance between them quickly, causing Vaati to step back reflexively. He could not get away from Ganondorf’s swift hand cupping his chin and pulling it forward, however. “But I am more curious about the boy found within the demon’s shell.”

Vaati snarled, grabbing Ganondorf’s wrist and trying to tug him away. The Gerudo’s grip was like iron. “I’m not a _child_ , Gerudo. And I have no answers for a body created by your own damn spell.”

Ganondorf’s eyes were cold, searching. For what, Vaati didn’t know. “I told you before, the spell had _nothing_ to do with this. Its purpose is to limit a magical being’s magic output to just enough for them to survive. _This is your body without dark magic holding it together._ ”

The mage grunted, trying to wriggle out of the man’s grip. “I have NO reason to believe any damn thing that comes out of your mouth!”

“What purpose would I have to lie to you about this? What purpose could I POSSIBLY have to change you into some weird mockery of a Hylian?” Vaati flinched as the King’s free hand moved up to brush at the hair that was always in his face. “And with such a scar?”

He stopped struggling, looking up at Ganondorf with confusion. “A what?”

It was the larger man’s turn to look confused. “The scar under your hair? Have you not looked in the mirror since you came here?”

“No? It’s…” Vaati reached up to the right side of his face. He had never really paid it any mind… Right, humans have two eyes. But that side of his face never had much feeling. “Fogged…”

He fled to the bathroom without another word. His mind was swimming, and for some reason he felt sick in the pit of his stomach. The mirror was still fogged but Vaati’s hands made quick work of that.

Staring at him from the mirror was someone he did not recognize. Lavender skin, violet hair, with one piercing bright red eye digging into his very soul. He looked young. Frightened. Like a Hylian but… wrong. Off. Something pretending to be Hylian.

Vaati’s head throbbed. There was something… something at the very edges of his mind he could not grasp. Somehow… Somehow, he knew now that Ganondorf was not lying. This face… existed before.

Before what?

He closed his eyes, focusing on breathing and hoping the sharp pain in his head would go away as he rested his forehead on the cool stone of the countertop. What was going on? He was so confused. Who was that in the mirror and… why?

Why did it feel familiar?

Like a dream.

… The scar, right. He came to look at the scar. There had been an odd mark under his visible eye, but that was not what Ganondorf had spoken of. Taking a calming breath, he looked at his reflection again. The sick feeling returned, but he did his best to ignore it.

He reached up, pulling the long section of bangs that covered his face to the side. A blank, dead white eye stared back, the thick scarred skin around it extending down his cheek suggesting quite the injury.

_\--_

_“Vaati, stop!”_

_A flash of white. His face burned._

_He had hit him._

_He hit him he hit him he hit him he hit him he hit him he never cared he never cared he never care **he never cared**_

_\--_

A hand touched his shoulder.

“DON’T TOUCH ME, OLD MAN!” Vaati shrieked, a blast of wind knocking the hands owner away as the collar burned.

Ganondorf hit the dresser with a crash, the noise knocking Vaati out of whatever trance he had been in. The Gerudo groaned, slowly getting back up to his feet. “Vaati…?”

Vaati was shaking. His head pounded against his skull, threatening to burst open. What… what was that? That voice. Who? It hurt to think. It hurt to exist. He barely managed to croak out his next words. “Get out.”

Ganondorf watched him warily, but he did not protest. He backed out of the room and into the sitting area, never taking his eyes off the mage. There he paused; lips pressed in a frown. “Suri will bring your dinner later… I will tell her to include something to dull headaches.”

“Who…?” Vaati grimaced at how weak his voice sounded.

“The one who brought you here.” Ganondorf smoothed out his clothes. “I will return another time.”

He did not bother to respond, and the King left without another word.

Once he heard the door close and lock, Vaati let out a shaky breath, leaning against the bathroom counter. The mirror stood before him mockingly, not a scratch on it from his little outburst. Goddess… he was so tired all of a sudden.

He waited until his limbs stopped shaking quite so much, then he stumbled his way onto the bed. Hopefully, he could sleep the pain away. It worked before. The bedding was soft, enveloping him in protective comfort he hadn’t felt in… well… eons. It did not take long for sleep to find him.


	6. Dreams and Arguments

_“Did you hear?”_

_Sunlight filtered through clover leaves far above, lighting them in gold._

_“Master ____ took a new apprentice?”_

_The wind tossed the leaves about, causing the light to scatter. It hurt his eyes._

_“What do you mean he took in_ **that one** _?”_

_“I don’t mean to doubt his judgement but…”_

_“That one is going to be nothing but trouble.”_

_“I almost feel sorry for Master ____...”_

_The whispers were talking about him. They always talked about him. It’s not like he couldn’t hear them. He could feel their eyes on his back._

_Whatever, let them gossip._

_“Vaati.”_

_He blinked and he was on the deck of a cottage overlooking the nearby lake. He was holding a broom that was no more than twigs. Turning to the doorway, an old man he couldn’t quite see tapped his staff on the wood below._

_“Stop daydreaming. I need you to get my new robe from the tailor and _____ should have my order ready at the market. While you’re there we’re low on milk and get a bundle of berries. Make sure they’re good, don’t want them to rot so fast like last time.”_

_The orders washed over him. Menial tasks. Always menial tasks and the old man’s chores. When was he going to learn real magic? Every time he pressed it was always “when you’re ready.” He was ready now, dammit! He had been ready his whole life!_

_“Are you lis-_

_The world blurred and he was standing on a tree branch looking down on a familiar looking boy._

_tening to me?!”_

_“Ow ow ow ow ow!!!”_

_He had to raise a hand to cover a quiet laugh as he watched the boy’s…_ **hat** _peck angrily at his head. The boy tried to pull it off his head to get away, but the hat’s neck was long and its beak sharp._

_“I’m sorry I’m sorry!”_

_“I told you we don’t have time to doddle!! Get your head out of the clouds and back to the task at hand!”_

_In that moment, he almost felt bad for the kid. The old man hadn’t grown any nicer in hat form, it seemed. Oh well, it felt good to have the old man’s ire on someone else for a change. Maybe the boy will realize the heartless bird is just using him and come join him instead. … Well, with his little girlfriend turned to stone back at the castle that was unlikely._

_Oh well. The boy and his old master would lead him to what he desires soon enough~ If the boy wanted to die afterwards, that was not his problem._

_\--_

The morning sun filtered down from the high window onto Vaati’s face. He groaned, turning away from it in hopes to get more sleep. This had been the best sleep in his life and he wasn’t about to end it so soon, even if the dreams were odd.

Had he ever had dreams like these before? Of clovers and grass? He supposed he had never really slept before this body, all things considered. Did not really need to before. Not as much anyway.

Movement in the main room made him tense, fully awake now. He relaxed when he noticed the click of familiar heels. It must be the woman from before. Ganondorf has said she would be stopping by…

With a quiet groan he extracted himself from the tangled sheets, picking up the soft brush he must have put on his bedside table the night before. He brushed his hair as he peeked out of the bedroom door. As he expected, the woman from before was in the room, setting a tray down on the table. Smelled like food.

The guard-Oh what had Ganondorf called her… Suri?-turned after brushing her hands on her pants, stopping when she saw Vaati.

“Sav'otta, little one.”

He blinked at her blankly. She motioned to the table before moving past him to collect his dirty clothes and towels from the bathroom, which he had not moved as she requested before.

“Breakfast. Eat up.”

Still brushing his hair, he wandered over to the table and sat down to eye his meal. Fruit, bread, a glass of milk, a little vial of light blue liquid, and what appeared to be some sort of… meat tube? Silently he began to pick at the selection, starting with the bread. He’d never cared much for meat, from what he remembered, but in the dungeon he didn’t have much of a choice. It wasn’t that it smelled… bad? Very savory. But his stomach was not as happy with the scent as he would have liked it to be.

“The King was concerned about you.”

Vaati looked over at the Gerudo. It was the first time he got a good look at her without a hundred other things spinning around in his head. Her white lipstick was stark against her dark skin but worked oddly well matched with her white patterned pants and light blue top. She even had a bit of blue eyeshadow to pull the whole thing together. As with other Gerudo she wore golden jewelry, and her short bob was decorated with a thin gold headband.

“Do all Gerudo color coordinate their makeup with their outfit, or is that a preference?”

Suri raised an eyebrow at him, but smirked. “Depends on the Gerudo.”

“Your King certainly doesn’t, with that ugly brown…” Vaati grumbled, taking another bite of bread. “Can’t imagine him with lipstick, though.”

He did not watch her for her reaction, but he caught the stifled snort. Putting the laundry down, Suri moved back to the table to pick up the small vial and place it in his hand, tapping it with a nail. “For headaches.”

“I am aware.” Vaati placed it back down, he would rather save it for a worse time. His body was sore, but the intense headache from the day before had subsided into a faint ache. Somehow he was sure it would return in time.

“Strange Voe,” She hummed, tilting her head, “You want makeup? Pretty enough without it.”

The mage nearly choked on his milk as Suri smirked down at him. “No… No. It was just an observation.”

Humming again, she backed off, picking up the laundry basket before heading to the door. “If there something you want, I can bring it.”

“I… will keep that in mind.”

She left with an amused look on her face, locking the door behind her. Vaati sunk in his chair, nibbling grumpily at the last of the bread before reaching for the fruit. He gazed out the small window at the sprawling sands. Sand, rocks, and more sand. How did a people live in such harsh conditions? Perhaps there was an oasis where he could not see. The fruit certainly seemed fresh.

His eyes returned to the door of his new prison. It was simple wood. Looked sturdy. Suri was good about locking it when she went out, but there must be moments where it would be unlocked long enough to escape. He was regaining his strength; with proper preparation it wouldn’t be inconceivable to slip out… though the desert was worrying. With the golden band around his neck his magic options were grossly limited, he would likely be forced to find aid to remove it. The strongest magic user he knew other than himself and Ganondorf…

Ugh, the princess.

Even if it were a guarantee that she was old enough to master her magic in this cycle, he would not go so low as to ask _her_ for help.

He was ashamed he ever fell for her.

Suri returned as he slowly chewed through his fruit, reminiscing about the Zelda he once tried to marry. Her spunky attitude, her flowing orange hair that only made her icy glare pop… No other princess had captured his interest so fully.

… Maybe he had a thing for redheads.

Suri cleared her throat, drawing his attention. “New clothes in basket. Will be going now.”

“Ah-hm,” Vaati coughed quietly behind a hand as he swallowed a piece of the fruit wrong. Inefficient, stupid body. “I desire reading material if I am to be stuck here at all hours. History books, preferably.”

Suri nodded, heading out the door when it seemed he had no further requests. He heard the click of the lock. With a huff he turned back to the last part of his meal, the meat.

He cut into it with the blunt utensils he was given. It was surprisingly soft on the inside, with the outer casing crispy enough to pop when he cut it. He took a whiff. With other food in him, his stomach didn’t protest the smell as much. He popped it in his mouth without further fanfare. It was juicy and was as savory as he expected. The flavor was not bad, in fact he would say it was rather tasty. He cut a couple more slices, only finishing half of the sausage before he could not anymore. Something about meat filled him up way too fast. He preferred fruit. Or nuts.

Not that he had ever eaten in his memory before this whole… Hylian body thing. Yet, he could almost taste the flavor of roasted nuts when he thought about it. Maybe he had eaten some before. When he originally had this body.

Vaati sighed in annoyance. He was still having problems processing that he may have been mortal once. Maybe the feeling he got at the mirror was a fluke?

One way to find out…

Taking a final swig of milk, he got up and headed for the bathroom. He hesitated at the doorway before huffing. Stupid. Getting nervous about a reflection. Pathetic.

After berating himself for how silly this all was, he strode up to the mirror and fixed his glare upon his reflection. It glared back.

… Damn. The odd but faint recognition of those features still remained, deep inside. Something about the reflection was still off, though. Like he was missing a piece of a puzzle. He fiddled with his hair to try and make the feeling stop. Hair up? No that was not not it. Pulled back? No. Braided? … Not a bad look but still no.

He brushed it back out, grumbling. There must be something… Well, his demon form had a crescent atop what would be his head. His crown. Perhaps he used to wear something in his hair? He patted his head in frustration. Something about the weight comforted him. A hat perhaps? Did he have a hat? It would be odd if it were a piece of clothing he was missing, he had transformed with the rest of his purple attire on. Ganondorf would have mentioned something about a hat, wouldn’t he?

Hm, he could not guarantee that, but it seemed like a silly thing to omit or take from him.

Sighing, he gave his reflection one last seething glare before throwing a towel over it. The unease of looking at a foreign but vaguely familiar face was getting to him. And what if he accidentally saw his right eye again? He shuddered at the thought. Whatever memory that had triggered, he did not want to see it again.

The clovers he kept dreaming about… those were more curious. Hyrule didn’t have giant clovers anywhere. None that he remembered, anyway. Hopefully the history books would help give him something to work with. It would be good to know the current state of the Royal Family if he was going to swoop in and steal the takeover from Ganondorf at some point.

He wondered if the princess knew he had been released yet.

~~0~~

The history books he asked for were not as helpful as he had hoped. As expected, the stories of the Four Sword were nowhere to be found. Faded into obscurity a long time ago it seemed. He wondered if that meant the Royal Family did not even keep tabs on it anymore. That bode well for both him and his captor if that was the case. Other times he had broken the bonds of his prison, it was usually responded to quickly by the princess and whatever boy she had tailing her like a puppy. Not the best for keeping invasions a secret. Ganondorf’s little army would be in trouble if Hyrule knew someone had broken out an ancient Wind Demon.

What interested him more were some old tales about a Dark King of Monsters who seemed to have a difficult time staying dead. He was said to be a massive bipedal pig creature by the name of Ganon, who wielded a powerful trident.

Now why did those sound familiar, hm?

He had some questions for the Gerudo King later.

The greatest tell for how long it had been since he was last awake was the language all these texts were written in. He had noticed some oddities in the scrap Ganondorf had shown him earlier, but the tomes, both new and old, proves they were not printing or handwriting mistakes. They were all in Hyrulean, as one would expect for a country who has been the dominant kingdom for longer than he remembered, but it was not a form he was familiar with.

Thankfully he had always been gifted with the ability to adapt to such changes, something he had assumed was just a perk of being an immortal demon. It took a bit to get used to the new text, but by the evening he may as well have been fluent.

He flipped through some other books of interest Suri brought him. Modern racial relations, kingdom borders, and the like. All to help familiarize himself with the world he now resided in. It was not something he had done before in his short bursts of freedom. Typically, he just looked for the first thing that looked like Hyrule Castle and sent as much of it into chaos as possible before fling off and looking for his beautiful palace in the sky.

Vaati hummed, looking back out the window at the darkening sky. He wondered if the sky palace still existed. It wasn’t in the best of shape the last he remembered of it. There was a distinct possibility he may need to build a new one…

A click of the lock was all the warning he got before Ganondorf entered the room. The mage’s mood instantly fell.

“Knocking,” He glared at the man from his pile of books. “It’s only polite.”

“Just because you have a room doesn’t mean you are a _guest_ yet.” Ganondorf huffed, locking the door. “I will determine when you deserve such courtesy.”

Vaati just stared at the man blankly, “… So what do you want? I’m a bit busy.”

“I see you are,” Ganondorf leaned back against the door, arms folded. His hair was not done up today. Or perhaps he was getting ready for bed before he decided to bother him with more nonsense. Either way, Vaati was surprised to see he had much more hair than his previous hairstyles had let on. It fell down past his shoulders like a mane. In the evening light it gave him a silhouette almost like a lion. He wondered why he didn’t wear it like that more often.

“And? If you could keep it short, I would appreciate it.”

“My interest in negotiation still stands. You never bothered to hear my offers.”

“Out with it then, I don’t have all day.” They both knew that was a lie, but the King let it slide.

“The entire point of the collar spell is I can control how much power it keeps from you.” Vaati’s eye lifted from the page he was reading to look at him. “If you swear your allegiance to me, I will loosen it’s grip and restore your magic.”

“No.” Vaati replied almost in reflex, returning to look at the book.

He missed witnessing Ganondorf’s eye twitch in quiet irritation. “Quite stubborn on that, hm?”

“I don’t do alliances.” Vaati flashed him a smile that was full of teeth and no humor, “And don’t think I didn’t notice that you didn’t say you’d remove the spell.”

“You’re very confident for a man in your position.”

“And what position is that? Pray tell?”

Ganondorf crossed the room in a couple strides, placing a hand on the wall so he could bend over and loom menacingly at the much, much smaller and sitting mage. Vaati hated to admit it almost worked on sheer size difference alone. “You seem to forget that I determine your quality of life. A little gratitude is owed, don’t you think?”

Vaati snorted ungracefully, barking a laugh at such an absurd notion. “Gratitude?!” He put on a stupid voice, “Oh thank you Mr. King for saving me from those scawy monstews in the dungeon even tho you’re the one who turned me into this weakling in the first place~!” He switched to a scathing glare. “Fuck off.”

Ganondorf snarled, “Do you _want_ to back in the dungeon?”

“No, but I call your bluff, _your highness_.”

“It’s not a bluff, mage.”

“Bullshit.” Vaati fully turned to Ganondorf, waving a finger in his face, “You could have just left me in there with a new guard and continued to keep me just barely before death’s door. Probably would have worked if you kept it up. Maybe add some torture in there, set your little minions on me on purpose, perhaps? I would have broken eventually. But no, you’ve been weirdly nice despite all this stupid posing. It’s not lulling me into any sense of security, what it is is Din damned inconsistent! The only thing intimidating about you is your size.”

Ganondorf’s hand was on his neck in a second, pressing him back against the wall. The grip was tight enough to hurt, but not tight enough to fully close his windpipe. He leaned in to growl in Vaati’s face. “Fine. I have no interest in damaging you permanently, you caught me. Your abilities are too valuable to me and it would be a shame to scar this body more than it has been.” His grip loosened just enough to run a thumb over Vaati’s jaw. “If only your mouth wasn’t so aggravating.”

Vaati kept his glare from flinching, but it was tinted with a bit of confusion. “Lucky me.”

Ganondorf’s golden eyes matched his glare for a few moments before he huffed and dropped Vaati, stepping back. “The fact stands that if you cooperate with me, you will gain your magic back. If you don’t, you remain like this. Think about it.”

With that he spun on his heel and stalked out of the room.

Vaati idly rubbed his neck, feeling a mixture of annoyance and confusion. He did not understand that man, at all. Proper torture would get to his goals infinitely faster, yet he seemed fine to have this drag on ad infinitem.

Whatever. It just meant eventually he would slip up, and Vaati would take that chance to escape. He would just have to be patient.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to say thank you for all the nice comments. ;v;  
> I'm bad at coming up with replies but I really appreciate it.


	7. 20 Questions

The rest of the week was at best uneventful and at worst absolutely boring. Ganondorf did not return to spout more baseless threats, which on one hand was good since any conversation they had seemed to devolve into shouting matches, but on the other hand at least he broke up the monotony of confinement.

Vaati continued to browse what books on history and myth Suri would bring him. They provided at least some distraction, though apparently these were all the fortress library had on hand. He would have to think up a new hobby soon. Perhaps Ganondorf would let him look through the magic tomes they clearly owned. Even if he couldn’t perform his own magic, he could at least brush up on magic theory.

Suri had begun spending her time sitting on the spare chair in the main room reading a book or writing quietly to herself. Apparently it was more interesting than standing outside the door for hours. Vaati didn’t complain. She kept to herself for the most part unless he initiated conversation.

He had been slowly working through a chapter on traditional and modern festivals and holidays. It wasn’t particularly interesting, but at this point he had read most of the history books and the only one unfinished was some military account of land wars between the local races and he couldn’t bring himself to read such dry material right then. Still, he was having trouble concentrating on the words before him. He was so bored.

Yeah, he would request magic texts next time. Goddesses he needed something engaging to work on or he would go insane.

When he realized he had read the same paragraph about some obscure Din holiday, he decided to step away from a moment. He leaned back in his chair with a sigh, glancing over at his quiet guard. She was reading some book he could not read the cover of. Apparently it was written in the native script of the Gerudo, but Suri never answered his question on what exactly it was despite his pressing.

Suri’s eyes flicked up to meet his as he watched her. “Yes, little Voe?”

“I told you to stop calling me that. I’m not a child.”

Suri snorted, eyes moving back to her book. “Vehvi means child. You are size of a Vehvi, but I know you are not one.”

“… I’m not that short…” Vaati grumbled under his breath, pointedly ignoring her raised eyebrow at the insistence. Stupid giant desert folk… He shot a glare out at the desert horizon as if that would grant him a few extra inches. Truthfully, he had not even seen a full grown Hylian in some time, and certainly not in this form. For all he knew he _was_ short for one. “My true body is much more intimidating.”

“Oh?” Suri hummed, not sounding convinced. “How so?”

“It is a body made of pure dark energy! My wings lifted me far above the ground so I could tower over my enemies and powerful enough to create tornadoes in my wake! My glare could freeze volcanoes!” Vaati’s eyes glimmered with pride as he described his magic form, only to deflate a little as Suri turned to a new page of her book with no reaction. He huffed and grabbed a charcoal stick and spare paper from the writing desk. With care and precision, he recreated his appearance that had graced his palace and the Four Sword Sanctuary before it eroded away. Once he was satisfied, he shoved it in Suri’s face. “Like this!”

Suri glanced up at the paper with fake interest before blinking and looking again. The drawing was… well it was more of a scribble than a drawing, done by hands that clearly have not had to hold a writing tool in ages. She squinted at it for a moment as she tried to comprehend what he was trying to depict. “You were… a fat Keese?”

She almost felt bad at the genuine shock and offense on the purple mage’s face.

Almost.

“F-Fat-?!” Vaati sputtered in indignation. “No I was not a KEESE! I was more than 100 times bigger than any stupid keese!! And I had TEN wings, thank you! Not just two!”

Suri had to keep herself from smiling. For a man who insisted he was not a child, he certainly acted like one when he was mad. “I see why you couldn’t find a bride.”

Vaati’s anger instantly vanished, replaced with confusion. “Huh?”

Suri turned to a new page of her book. “How would a flying eyeball please a woman?”

“By having the power to provide her with all the riches in the world?”

“No,” She clicked her tongue in distaste, “I do not mean things.”

“I would provide her with everything she ever wanted or needed! Clothes! Food! The comfiest room with the best view in the castle.”

“Love isn’t only about gifts, little Voe.”

Vaati blinked at her. He looked lost. “What else would a bride need? I… I would be there. For conversation. I would have lots of books for her to read in the library.”

“But how would you _please_ her? How would you show your love?”

“Love?”

The odd tone in Vaati’s voice made Suri look up at him. She studied him with a frown, closing her book and setting it aside. Clasping her fingers together on her lap, she leaned forward. “Little Voe… _Why_ did you want a bride?”

Vaati was quiet for a moment, taking the question seriously to Suri’s mild surprise. “They were beautiful.”

“You wanted a trophy?”

“No-“ Vaati’s face scrunched as he thought about it. “I… wanted… them to like me, not just be a prisoner. A bride… You marry someone you like and then you are together forever.”

Suri stared at the Hylian standing in front of her. As the silence dragged on, Vaati began to squirm uncomfortably. Was he wrong? The way she was looking at him made him feel like he was wrong. Then again, she kept saying strange things before. Why weren’t gifts enough? He thought this was about his appearance at first but now he was very confused.

“Vaati.” He nearly jumped when Suri addressed him by his name, “Are you sure you are not a child?”

“Yes!” Anger flared up again, which he was glad for. Anger was comfortable, “Why?!”

“Because…” Suri’s words were measured and slow, her eyes showing concern. “You have... a very child-like view of marriage.”

“What do you mean?”

“It sounds like you just wanted a companion.”

“How is that different?”

“Marriage is for lovers. Companions do not need a ceremony.”

“ _What is the difference?_ ” Vaati was getting visibly frustrated.

“Lovers… tend to fulfill romantic, mental, and physical needs. Companions usually are less romantic.” Suri was not sure how detailed she should get into the overlap, she feared it would confuse him more.

“Ugh, fine, what’s romantic, then? Are gifts not romantic?”

“Some can be…” She was going to get a headache. With a sigh she pinched the bridge of her nose to drive it away. Maybe she should just be blunt. “Different question. Do you know what sex is?”

“No.”

Oh Din, give her strength. “… Many who marry have children.”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“How are children made?”

“I don’t know, with magic or something.”

Vaati could not decipher the expression on Suri’s face. It was like she had just had some sort of epiphany or she was in pain. One or the other. This whole conversation had become strange. He still did not know what this all had to do with pleasing a bride. Perhaps the maiden would have eventually wanted kids? Well he was a powerful mage; he would eventually figure out how to create one if she really wanted something like that. For some reason he kept imagining seeds. That probably was not right, though, Hylians were much bigger than flower seeds.

While he was deep in thought, Suri had gotten up and headed towards the door. “I am going to check dinner.”

Vaati blinked. “Okay.”

She flashed him a weird, strained smile before leaving. Locking the door as per usual. Vaati sighed, looking at the drawing he did of himself. He thought it looked decent, though he knew he would have to practice writing if he were to study magic. His runes would look awful in this state.

He tossed the paper down next to Suri’s book-

Oh. Suri left her book. Weird.

-and headed back to his seat where he left all his books. Now that his guard was gone the books were once again his only entertainment. Sighing, he decided to flip a few pages forward. None of these holidays were any interesting. All surrounding the Golden Triad or Hylia. Boring.

After a few pages of scanning for anything different enough to be worth reading, he found a list of ancient festivals that were no longer widely celebrated. That was different enough to at least catch his eye. Few of them had more than names, many with notes that the origins of many had been lost to time. Wing Celebration, Carnival of Time, Picori Festival.

Vaati paused.

Picori Festival…

Picori…

He frowned, the now familiar pain in his head returning. A strange word, Picori. Yet it felt so familiar. Teasing the back of his mind, mocking him.

Vaati rubbed at his temples. If he were to follow the trend of his headaches… this likely meant the word had something to do with the past he couldn’t remember.

Fragments of… something briefly took shape. A sword. Not the Four Sword, but… similar. A sword and a chest. A broken sword.

A blond boy in green, but not the ones he knew.

Vaati groaned, the throbbing in his head growing worse. The boy looked familiar. Like the one in his dream. The same boy, perhaps? A boy and a talking cap that somehow he knew he hated. Not the boy. Every flash only gave feelings of mild annoyance. The hat. He hated the hat with a sick, black feeling in his chest.

Picori…

He wondered if he could find more information on that word. The book provided little. Just that the festival was annual and celebrated some event that happened every 100 years. Very unhelpful. Almost every damn festival and holiday was about some stupid event. He closed the book in irritation, making a note on some scratch paper.

Picori…

The word reminded him of clovers.

~~0~~

Suri eventually returned for her book, seemingly uninterested in continuing whatever weird topic they had spoken about earlier. Vaati did not mind. Everything she said just made him more confused anyway.

She did toss him a book, though. He looked at her questioningly as he picked it up. It was about the size of one she was reading, with simple thin leather binding unlike the large bound tomes he had been working through. The title was strange.

_‘Twilight Stable Hand’_

“The hell is this?” Vaati turned the book over in his hands and flipped through the pages. It was not a historical document, that was for sure. He paused at an illustration seeming to depict a Gerudo woman on a horse caressing the face of a well built Hylian man in the moonlight.

“… Fiction.” Suri finally answered after a pause. “Entertainment for when you grow bored of History.”

Vaati raised an eyebrow, but she kept her eyes on her book. “… Thanks, I guess.” He shrugged, putting it down next to his growing pile of notes. Most of them were requests for magic literature and a research request for the odd familiar word he found. “I am finished with these anyway.”

Suri just hummed in response.

He turned back to the handful of notes he had taken of points of interest he found within the history books. “Did your King get bored of me, or is he still pouting over our last argument?”

She seemed glad Vaati was not bringing up their topic from before. “He is busy. He is King after all.”

“Tch,” How annoying. He had questions for the bastard King if he would let him talk before pissing him off. Perhaps Suri would have insight on some of them. “… Did you know your king has the name of an ancient evil demon lord?”

Suri’s eyes glanced up to him. “I am aware.”

“Why would you name a kid after an evil being anyway?”

She sighed, closing her book once more. “… We don’t. Men are not born to our tribe often, and we do not give them that name, even if it was once tradition. Many fear it would push evil onto the child.”

“So why is he called Ganondorf?”

“He chose that name himself. To strike fear into Hyrule.”

Vaati leaned his head on his hand, “And the fact he chose that name _and_ that he found the same weapon as the guy doesn’t concern you at all?”

Suri frowned, “Not every Gerudo follows him. Those who are superstitious left for the far sands, fearful of Hyrule’s rage. Those of us here follow him because he wants justice for our tribe.” She bared her teeth. “For centuries they demonized us, treated us as thieves, whores. Look down on us, believe they are superior by divine right. That Hylia and the Triad love them and despise us. Ignored our plea for aid when the rains don’t come. Taken what little fertile land we have and then blamed us for starving. Ganondorf has promised change. Promised to make Hyrule understand we will not be pushed around. We follow him because he brings hope.”

Vaati watched her as she spoke, her face contorting with hatred for Hyrule. “Yet he employs monsters and tried to recruit a demon like me.”

“Our forces are small… It is… not ideal. But he believes he can control them and use them to our advantage. And you…” She hummed thoughtfully. “Well, you are more than he expected.”

“He wants to control me too.”

She clicked her tongue, “You have not been listening to him.”

“He said he thought I was just another monster.”

“But you’re not. That changed his plans.”

“What are his plans for me when I keep refusing to work for him?”

Suri hummed again. “What indeed…”

“You don’t know?”

“I am an elite guard, not his confidant.”

“Elite? I thought elite guards would wear more armor.”

“Metal is heavy. My skills require speed.”

“You don’t even have a weapon on you. Are you all really so confident I won’t try to hurt you?”

That got a bark of a laugh out of Suri. “I don’t need one.”

Vaati’s eyes narrowed, “Very confident, I see.”

“I can break you, little Voe.”

Well, he couldn’t argue the likeliness of that. This Hylian form was not gifted in brute strength. “We’ll see when I get my magic back.”

The Gerudo just smirked. “We shall.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did Suri just give Vaati a romance novel?  
> Yes.


	8. Discoveries

If Suri asked, he did not read the book. He did not consume most of it in one night. And he DEFINITELY did not throw the book across the room in embarrassment when the book introduced certain things couples do in entirely too much detail. He also did not feel uncomfortable how some of those things made him feel things he could not describe after getting far too into the characters.

He did not read the book.

He would not think about it ever again.

~~0~~

“The Hyrule’s knights have been scatters across the land due to the increase in monster sightings.”

Ganondorf sat in his throne, half listening as his general and other council members give their daily reports.

“The King, as expected, is playing it down to his subjects. They are unaware of the growing dangers around them. He also continues to refuse an audience with you, my Lord.”

“His arrogance will be his downfall.”

Ganondorf responded only with a nod, mind drifting to the little mage confined to his tower rooms. All his studies on holy sealing weapons, and none had mentioned memory loss of their occupants. It was as intriguing as it was worrisome. Was it merely an undocumented side effect of long-term sealing?

“My King.”

It would be a difficult subject of study, due to the comparatively short lifespans of humans in this world. Not to mention there were very, very few examples of seals which regularly break.

“Sire.”

What concerned him most, though, was how much distress it was causing the purple mage.

“ _GAN!_ ”

Ganondorf blinked, lifting his head from where it rested against his palm. Only one of his counsel would call his name so casually, and she was glaring at him impatiently from the other side of the table the map of Hyrule had been laid out upon. Dressed in white and light pink silks, her long hair tied up in the traditional ponytail and bright jewel resting upon her brow, his high priestess, Nabooru was tapping her foot on the stone below.

“Did you hear anything that I just said?”

The other council members looked uncomfortable with her outburst. If it were anyone else, he would be angry at such rude behavior, but it was hard to be angry at the woman he considered like a sister to him.

Especially when she was in the right.

He cleared his throat, sounding more awkward than he intended. “… Please repeat that, Priestess Nabooru.”

She let out a heavy sigh, pinching her brow. She knew these meetings were not the most engaging but ever since he returned to the fortress with that oddly dressed Hylian he had been spacing out way too much. It was starting to make the rest of the council concerned about his priorities.

“There has been an increase in fairy activity as of late, though the Great Fairy has not explained why. She seems greatly amused by… something. Whether that is good or bad for our efforts it is hard to say. Such is the way with fairies.”

Ganondorf hummed, “Anything from the Goddesses?”

“Din has been sending me visions, but in their current form they are little more than feelings. Something is coming. I will report immediately when I get a better read.”

He scratched at his beard. It needed a trim… “Thank you. Perhaps our moment to strike is approaching. Keep me informed.”

Nabooru bowed her head, “Of course, my Lord.”

The doors to the throne room slammed open, causing the council to straighten and reach for their blades. Nabooru and the general stepped aside as two soldiers approached, dragging behind them a bound prisoner.

“Why have you intruded on our meeting?” Ganondorf stared the soldiers down. This had better be important.

“My King! We caught this Hylian spy inside our borders.” The soldiers shoved the man forward and onto his knees. From where he sat, Ganondorf could tell the man wasn’t resisting in any way. In fact, he seemed quite calm for being bound and dragged all the way up here.

“A spy, are you certain?”

“He has not responded to our questions, my King!”

Ganondorf rose from his throne and made his way around the table to face the Hylian. “Stand.”

The Hylian silently obeyed, and the King was able to get a good look at him. He was a young man, slim but sturdy. His short blond hair was a bit of a mess from the guards’ rough handling, but he did not seem worse for wear. He wore a plain green tunic over some leggings. The King could tell just from the wear and sturdiness of his clothes that the young man was not of noble breed or a knight. A farmer or woodcutter, perhaps? Certainly not someone one would think of when they thought of a spy.

Yet his eyes were a clear, piercing blue, staring the Gerudo King with not an ounce of fear.

“Hm.” Ganondorf ran his fingers over the hilt of the blade strapped to his hip. “Explain yourself.”

The young man shifted, but his arms had been tied behind his back by the soldiers who brought him. A complicated expression crossed over the young man’s features. He flicked his eyes from his arm to Ganondorf, trying to communicate something to him.

Ganondorf watched him for a moment before raising an eyebrow. “Ah,” His hand moved from his sword to a small knife on his belt and moved forward, cutting the Hylian’s binds.

“S-sire!”

He lifted his hand to silence the distressed soldiers. “He needs his hands.”

A look of mildly surprised relief crossed the young man’s face before he bowed his head. When he looked the King in the eye once more his hands began to move in front of him in ways he recognized as Hyrulean sign.

“Ah, forgive me, my sign is rusty. Please repeat that.”

The young man nodded before beginning again, ‘ _I am here on request of the Princess_.’

Ganondorf frowned, “The Princess?”

The young man pulled out a folded piece of parchment from the bag on his belt, offering it to the King. Ganondorf took it, looking it over before opening it. It did have the Hyrule royal seal on it, though the wax was purple instead of the blue he was used to from the Hyrulean King.

His eyebrows knit together as he read the delicately written script. The Princess wanted to meet him urgently, she wished to discuss matters not only of Hyrule’s survival, but of all the races who made their home in these lands, and that included the Gerudo.

“What is this about?” Ganondorf looked down at the Hylian who stood patiently for his response. “Why am I getting a summons from her and not her father? As far as I am aware he is still the ruling King.”

‘ _Her father has ignored her requests._ ’ The blond man signed, ‘ _She has decided to take it into her own hands if he refuses to listen._ ’

“Hm…” His eyes flicked over to Nabooru, who looked as curious as he felt. Imperceptible to most, she nodded. That was all he needed to confirm his decision. The princess was said to have a close connection to the Goddesses. She could be a valuable source of information as long as she did not realize the King’s intentions of invasion.

He waved a hand and was quickly presented with his own blank parchment and pen. With a swift, practiced scrawl he wrote his acceptance of the request. “I noticed she had not picked a date or location.”

‘ _She is awaiting the responses from the Zora Queen and Goron Chief as well. The location will not be Hyrule Castle, but a sacred location she chooses. The date will be sent to you once she gets confirmation from everyone._ ’

“I see.” Ganondorf sealed his response and handed it to the Hylian. “Next time, try not to look like a spy.”

The Hylian took the letter with a small smirk, ‘ _Perhaps your guards should not be so quick to judge._ ’

“Men are not allowed on our soil; your princess should know that.”

The Hylian blinked before signing, ‘ _Oh. She did not tell me that_.’

Ganondorf raised a brow. How did this Hylian not know that fact? It had been a rule for eons. Either he was a fool or extremely naïve. “Our punishments are severe for those who break our laws. You were lucky this time, I will not be kind again.” He motioned to the guards. “Lead him back to the border.”

The Hylian bowed before being taken away. Once the doors closed the council burst into discussion. Nabooru walked over to his side, glancing at the doors.

“A curious development.”

“If she sent such a request it means she likely has not realized our plans. This could be a good thing.” Ganondorf scratched at his beard in thought.

“I wonder if this has anything to do with that mage of yours. The texts did mention a connection to the Princess.”

“Well I’ll find out when I meet her.”

“I hope you don’t think you’re going without me.”

“Of course not, Nab.”

Nabooru hummed, clearly pleased. “Has you little pet requested anything new?”

Ganondorf blinked and frowned at her phrasing, but her smirk just grew. “He’s not a pet-“

“You collared him.”

“ _Nabooru_ …” He rubbed at the bridge of his nose. “It’s a magic seal, not a collar. Besides, it looks more like a gold necklace.”

“Mmmhmm.”

“Anyway. Suri has informed me he wants access to books on magic now.”

“Bad idea. Even if he can’t use his dark magic that doesn’t mean he can’t attempt to control other forms.”

“He also requested looking into anything that can be found related to the word ‘Picori.’”

Nabooru frowned, tilting her head. “Picori?”

Ganondorf shrugged. “He found an ancient festival with that name and it caught his attention.”

“Hm, it might be related to his past, then?”

“I assume so.”

“Interesting. I’ll see what I can find. Our records aren’t as extensive as the Hyrule Royal Library, though.”

“I appreciate it.”

Nabooru folded her hands behind her back, watching her old friend as his mind wandered. His strong features were tense in thought. She had not seen him so focused since he began to study the dark trident a couple years ago. Really, if he wasn’t born male, he would probably be one of the Gerudo’s most passionate researchers. She fondly remembers the hours they spent as children exploring old ruins and reading almost crumbling tomes in the back of barely standing buildings. If it were not for his interest in them, the books now held in the library may have been turned to dust in the harsh desert sands by now.

Being a King only gave him so much time to indulge anymore. He had other duties now. More important ones than sinking hours into history and magic theory. Food was stable for now, but any prolonged dry period could tip the balance towards starvation in moments. Birth rates were almost nonexistent, and the population was dwindling. The Gerudo Elders had disowned him the second he took his new name and left with the few mothers and children far into the distant sands. She doubted they would change their tune even if they could see how well the old city renovations were going.

Sometimes she wondered if he really wanted to go against Hyrule, or if he just wanted to prove to the elders that he could really save their tribe. He never answered when she asked.

“So…” She sighed, stretching as the two of them wandered down the fortress halls towards the library. “Has Nayru shot you in the heart or is your interest in this mage purely scientific?”

The falter in his step amused her, especially as he kept his face as neutral as possible. “Why?”

“Well, putting together the puzzle of his past doesn’t seem particularly necessary for his recruitment.”

“It is just interesting to me… Facts erased by time… Memories so lost he literally thought I fabricated that body. He does not remember what originally drove him to madness, his childhood, anything. What flashes he seems to have had are clearly upsetting…”

“That is sad...” Nabooru tilted her head to the ceiling. “Some of the council thinks you’re too soft on him.”

“We are not in a rush.”

“They disagree.”

“Well they can fucking deal with it.”

Nabooru laughed heartily. “That’s my King~” Ganondorf rolled his eyes, but his lips quirked into a bit of a smile. “I wish to visit this little mage of yours. He seemed so harmless when you brought him in, but he must have quite the bite if you’re so interested in him~”

Ganondorf snorted, “More like he’s a brat. And there’s no reason for you to see him.”

“What? Afraid because I know your type and you won’t be able to deny it once I see him?”

“I don’t have a _type_.”

“That is the worst lie I have heard since the time I found you and that Hylian page in the stables when we were teens and you said you were just talking. I still can’t believe you thought I would buy that when you were both shirtless and he was so embarrassed he couldn’t form a sentence.”

Ganondorf covered his face with a hand. Success! She got him to blush. “Nab…”

“That mute Hylian was pretty cute too~”

“ _NAB_!”

~~0~~

_“Master I don’t understand. Why isn’t it coming to me?”_

_“Threads of magic take a lot of focus and practice to handle.”_

_“But I have been! I’ve been practicing every day! It’s been MONTHS, Master, and I can barely call one to me. It’s like they’re rejecting me.”_

_“Hm…” His master stroked his long white beard, “Perhaps it’s because you are-“_

_He paused, but Vaati’s eyes focused on the old man’s expression, his own having gone blank._

_“Erm…” His master stumbled over his words, muttering as he stroked his beard once more._

_Because I’m what, old man? Say it._

_“For some Minish it is harder to harness this kind of magic… I’m sure if you keep working hard it will come to you.”_

_At least the bastard had the decency to stop and try not to sound insulting. It was more than everyone else did. He even bothered to look slightly ashamed._

_Vaati would not forget, though._

_His master was just like everyone else…_

\--

Vaati woke up with a snort as several books were placed on his study table. He had apparently been using a rather large tome as a pillow, though he didn’t remember falling asleep while studying. Rubbing his eye, he blinked at the new books in confusion.

“Nnhuh?” Was all he managed to vocalize in his half-awake state.

“Sav'aaq, little Voe. Brought you more reading.”

Vaati sniffed and rubbed his face with a sleeve before trying to focus on the new books Suri set down. They were not the magic texts he requested… He picked one up to look at the title. ‘ _Desert Kiss_.’ A quick flip through told him it was another story like that one he had read the night before.

No. No he had not read it he definitely did not read it. He glanced at the doorframe to his bedroom where the insulting book lay crumpled where he had thrown it away. Seeing that a few of the pages were bent now almost tugged at his book-lover’s heart strings, but it deserved it.

Maybe.

Either way the only notable thing about the new book he was holding was the few illustrations seemed to only have women depicted. Huh.

“When did I say I wanted more of your weird stories?”

“You keep complaining you’re bored.” Suri rolled her eyes before noticing the crumpled book on the floor. She hissed and picked it up, trying to rescue the dented pages. “I see you gave this one a look.”

“Bored me after one paragraph.” He could not look her in the eye.

“Uh huh…” She didn’t seem convinced, brushing the book off and setting it down next to the others. “If you’re going to be throwing them, do not throw this one.” She tapped a book bound in blue tinted leather.

“Why?” Vaati picked it up. ‘ _Eyes Behind the Gate_.’ These books sure had odd titles. It did not look any different than the others though.

“It’s rare. Took me ages to find a copy.”

He raised an eyebrow as he opened it, flipping to the first illustration. It was in a slightly different style than the others, depicting a young Hylian man watching another through a fancy metal gate. “Rare? Why?”

Suri leaned back against the wall; arms crossed. “Hylian author. Not many copies were made. Hyrule has a… backwards view of love.”

Vaati’s eyebrows furrowed, flipping to more illustrations. He was surprised when he stumbled upon one where the two characters seemed to be sharing a kiss. So, this was a story similar in intimacy to the other book. Ugh, could she give him something less… embarrassing? “What do you mean, backwards?”

“Ah…” Suri twirled a bit of her hair around her finger as she thought. “Hyrule only recognizes it between Voe and Vai. The Gerudo do not believe this. Like a plant blooming in the harsh desert sands, whether cactus or scrub, love is to be celebrated.”

Vaati sighed, setting the book down. He honestly still did not really get it. All this romance stuff seemed… complicated. Even without whatever gender things Suri was rambling about.

“Are there stories that don’t focus on these things? I might not mind reading those.”

“Yes.” Suri raised an eyebrow, “Did the book upset you?”

“I said it bored me.”

“Hm… It was an attempt to explain some of my earlier inquiry about your thoughts on marriage and love. Without going into an anatomy lesson like you were a Vehvi.”

Vaati balked, “You teach your kids about this sex stuff?!”

Suri smiled, “Ah~ You did read further.” This time Vaati covered his face to hide the blush pushing through. “It is important for children to understand what is happening to their bodies, and the hows and whys of being intimate. That way it is hoped they will not feel shame for their feelings or be pushed into situations they are not ready for.”

“Is that so…”

“If you wish, I can bring you educational material instead.”

“No!” Vaati cleared his through to try and mask the squeak in his voice. “I’m… I’d rather not.”

“It would be good to understand your Hylian body.”

“ _I understand it just fine thank you very much!_ ”

Suri raised her hands in surrender, offering him an apologetic smile. “Okay, okay.”

Vaati rubbed his face with a grumble, he was very much done with this line of discussion. If they could never talk about it again, that would be great.

Though it did make him wonder if that princess long ago expected him to…

He had thought she had just been delaying their wedding for the heroes to show up, but if that’s what was expected the night after… well that might explain some of the looks she gave him at the time. It did not sit well with him, but that was long, long ago now.

He was so lost in his own thoughts he did not hear Suri whisper, “Sa'oten, Goddesses help my king…” under her breath.

A knock at the door caused both of their heads to turn. Suri pushed off the wall with a grunt and went to answer.

“Oh, sav'aaq, my King.”

“Sav'aaq, Suri. Wait outside, I wish to speak to him.”

Suri bowed before letting Ganondorf into the room, closing the door behind her as she left.

“Tch, good, I needed another annoyance today.” Vaati sent the man a glare, head resting in his hand.

His attitude did not get a reaction out of the Gerudo that he could tell. The man’s face was annoyingly hard to read. He blinked as Ganondorf tossed a piece of scrap paper onto the table.

“Your request for magic books has been denied for now.”

“What?!” Vaati snarled, “Why?”

Ganondorf smirked, “Too dangerous to let you study anything that could get you around the spell.”

“ _Great!_ ” Vaati slumped back in his chair in a huff. This day was just getting worse.

“But the head priestess did find something that referenced this ‘Picori’ you wrote about,” He motioned to the paper, “It’s not much.”

Vaati snatched the paper scrap up, hungrily scanning the words on it.

_‘Picori seemed to be the name of a mythical creature. All references to them are hidden away in children’s fairytales.’_

“… That’s it?”

“That’s it. She will let me know if she finds anything else.”

The mage wilted. He had thought he had found something useful, but it was just some kid’s fairytale. “Dammit...”

“Unfortunately, our library is limited. Hyrule Castle is said to house literature much older than anything salvaged here. If you join me, I can guarantee you full access to it’s records once the kingdom is under my rule.”

Vaati gave him a sour look. It always comes back to that. “Oh, fuck off.” He flinched slightly. He would have to reevaluate that curse now that he knew its origin. How crude.

“Your resistance is getting irritating. You must see by now it could be mutually beneficial to join me. If I was planning to force you to do anything demeaning I would have already.”

Vaati ignored Ganondorf as he continued to complain, staring out the window. He was tired of repeating himself. With a sigh he ran his thumbs over the piece of parchment that spoke of the Picori. Some mythological creature, huh. The world was full of fantastical races, it was rare to find one that was purely fabrication. If it wasn’t a fabrication, though, how could they have just disappeared from history? Did they die out? Was he one of them? He could hardly believe his human form was real, but he knew he was not Hylian. There was more to it.

In his dreams… His hands… They were not human hands. They were… long. A longer palm and thin fingers. The old man-

Vaati blinked. The old man. He could almost picture his face from his last dream. Pointed nose, large black eyes, long slender ears that twitched with every sound. Those weren’t the features of any creature he could name.

_Minish._

He looked down at the piece of paper, running a thumb over the word Picori.

“Are you even listening, Vaati?”

Vaati’s head turned up to stare at Ganondorf, who had gotten much closer during whatever he had been ranting about. He blinked at him a moment before speaking. “The spell around my neck, is it blocking all my magic?”

Ganondorf frowned, a bit put off by the sudden change of topic. “No, the spell is supposed to let you keep enough inherent magic to not kill you if you are a magical being. Not enough to create spells but enough to live. Why?”

Vaati spun in the chair to face him. “Can you make it block more?”

“What?” The king stared, trying to figure out if Vaati had gone crazy.

“Can you?”

Ganondorf stroked his newly trimmed beard. “I can control the amount it blocks. I don’t know if I can push it further.”

“Try.”

“ _Why?_ ”

“Think about it. Why would I need magic to stay like this? If I am truly Hylian, completely blocking it won’t actually do anything.” He was staring Ganondorf right in the eyes, his crimson one gleaming with interest. “But I don’t think I am. I was never lying about that.”

Ganondorf stared back. He had never expected the mage to ask to make the collar _worse_. “… All right. If you insist.”

“I do.”

Ganondorf took a step back, raising his hand to draw symbols in the air. “And what do you plan to do if this works?”

“I have no idea!” Vaati’s grin was almost charming when not backed by arrogance. … No. Ganondorf had always found it charming. Still, it was different this time. Like a child about to do something really stupid.

The gold band on Vaati’s neck glowed as Ganondorf finished reactivating the spell. With a flick of his wrist, he set the amount of magic blocked to 100%. Instantly the band began to sizzle against Vaati’s neck. The mage grimaced, hand reaching up to touch it. It hurt. Why did he forget this hurt? He choked but raised his hand to stop Ganondorf when he looked like he was moving to stop it. Just a little more.

He was starting to feel a little funny.

Ganondorf let out a shout when Vaati suddenly disappeared in a puff of dark magic, the paper he was holding slowly floating down onto the now empty chair.

Gone. He was just gone.

Goddesses, he killed him.

He spun around the room in some vain hope he just moved somewhere, but he was alone.

The door opened and Suri poked her head in, concerned. “My King? Are you-“ She blinked at Ganondorf now standing by himself in the small room, slipping into her own tongue. “ _Where is the mage? Did he escape? Did he hurt you?_ ”

Ganondorf waved her off quickly, running a hand through his hair and looking no less distressed. “ _No, no, he… I… He disappeared_?”

“ _WHAT?_ ”


	9. A Different Perspective

Din, Nayru, Farore, and all the other godddessdamned goddesses in this stupid goddessdamn world he felt like shit.

He was going to puke. Hopefully on Ganondorf. Once the world stopped spinning, at least. Getting hit by that spell the first time had been painful, but this… this might be worse.

The hum of magic he had not realized had been under his very skin was gone. It was disorienting, like a rug had been pulled out from under him and he never quite hit the floor.

It was taking all of his energy just to sit there on his hands and knees and breathe. At the very least, it seemed like the experiment was over. The band had stopped burning. Now if only the nausea would leave too.

With a groan he finally opened his eyes, only to be met with foreign scenery. A vast, plush mass of fibers stretched out as far as his eyes could see. To one side a massive wooden pillar rose up to the sky, no, multiple square pillars.

Wait.

He squinted up at the pillars. Recognition finally hit him. That was his chair. He had just been sitting on that.

It was HUGE!

And that meant… He spun around. Yes, that must be the plush carpet in his study.

He reached out a foot to test its softness and-OH GODDESS WHAT HAPPENED TO HIS FOOT?!

Vaati fell back onto his butt with a squeak that sounded anything but human. He stared in shock at his own feet. They were like… little hands! Slowly he flexed and relaxed his little hand feet. It was so WEIRD.

And yet…

He raised his hands to get a good look at them. Long. Four fingered hands. Just like his dreams…

Minish… he was Minish.

Suddenly loud voices he could not understand boomed around the room. He scrambled up to his feet and rushed over to the chair leg. If he was really as small as he thought, he did NOT want to be anywhere near Ganondorf’s feet.

If he squinted he could see the blur of red, brown and gold moving around way, way up in the sky. Barely. It was a bit difficult to comprehend something that huge. What he could tell, though, was Ganondorf had no idea where he was.

Vaati highly doubted he would be able to hear him, either. These tiny lungs probably could not yell loud enough to be perceptible. He touched the gold band around his neck, which had adjusted to his new size. Damn, if he had known he was going to end up this small he would have set up like a timer or something to turn him back.

Well… he could start by trying to get his attention another way. Vaati looked around for anything of use. He could try climbing the chair leg but not only was it way too high it would probably take him too long. And by the sound of it, Suri had now entered and started yelling as well.

Or maybe they were speaking normally, and it just sounded like yelling to him. He didn’t know how this size thing worked.

Finally, his eyes landed on something promising. A discarded piece of charcoal stick. Perfect! He ran over to grab it, getting a crash course in learning how to use his hand feet in the process. It would take some getting used to, but if he was completely honest he was already over the being small thing.

Thankfully, the charcoal was almost just as light as when he was bigger. Now he just needed a canvas… Well the uncarpeted stone floor would probably work.

Of course that was when Ganondorf and Suri started walking around. With a yelp, Vaati dashed under the table as Ganondorf’s big stupid boot landed where he was standing a moment before. Idiot!! He could have killed him! He-

Vaati shrieked when Ganondorf’s face suddenly appeared, the man kneeling down to look under the table.

“You idiot!” Vaati yelled, having dropped the charcoal at the jumpscare. “Buffoon! You’re going to give me a heart attack!!!”

Ganondorf was close enough that Vaati could punch him in his stupid big nose. The vertically challenged mage wound one up before he noticed the look in the Gerudo’s eye. He was concerned, looking through Vaati rather than at him.

“I’m telling you, I don’t see him. There’s nowhere he could of gone!” Ugh, his voice was loud at this proximity, but at least Vaati could understand him.

“I’m right here you idiot!!” He jumped up and down as high as he could manage on his new odd legs, flailing his arms in the air. How could the man not see him?! He was LITERALLY right in front of his face! Vaati wasn’t that small!

“Ohohohoh, they can’t see you, dear.”

Vaati let out a squeak and whirled around towards the voice. For a moment, he thought he saw the Old Man from his dreams, but instead of a long white beard, this Minish let their long hair grow along the sides, the ends tied up to keep them off the floor. Their outfit was also different. Instead of the greens from his memories, this one wore robes of rich browns and reds, dotted with hints of gold similar to the accessories of the Gerudo who lived here. The Minish smiled at him. It was warm.

“What do you mean? Who are you?” Vaati winced at the higher pitch of his voice in this form. His demands came out less intimidating as he had hoped.

The old Minish leaned on their staff, eyes glittering with amusement. “Humans stop being able to see us Minish when they grow up.” They hummed, stroking their hair in thought. “You really haven’t been like this in a long, long time, have you? Call me Madam Bellani.”

“I-you… know me?” Vaati took a step back. “You’re… a Picori? Here?”

“That is what the humans once called us. We prefer Minish.” Madam Bellani chuckled. “Wherever there is life, there are Minish. There are many more than me here, though they prefer to live among the Gerudo. You can call us Fortress Minish if you desire.”

The older Minish approached Vaati, raising her staff to poke and prod curiously at Vaati, mumbling about his health. He couldn’t stop himself from flinching, but tried to relax when she clearly wasn’t going to hit him.

“Oh hohoho, the stories made you seem more menacing, but you really are just a young brat, aren’t you?”

Her laughter grated on his nerves. Baring his teeth, he grabbed the staff and glared. “The hell are you talking about? You know who I am?”

“Of course I know who you are, boy!” Her laughter didn’t stop, much to his annoyance. “Vaati the dark Minish. Last apprentice of Great Master Ezlo. No other Minish has coloring like you in this world, dear, you stand out. Even as a human you wear your differences with pride.” With an easy pull she took her staff back from Vaati and moved to smack his behind with it. “Come, come, better to speak inside than risk your friends feet.”

“Th-they’re not my friends!” He sputtered as Bellani ushered him into a small hole in the wall. He was still trying to grasp all that she had said. Master Ezlo? Was that the old man? “If you know who I am, why do you not seem the least bit concerned?”

“Ohohohohoh, I’m much too old to care.” She shot him a grin as she led him up some stairs carved into the stone of the wall. “Besides, I’ve been watching you, you barely know who you are! I suspect you wouldn’t want to ruin your only chance on getting some answers.”

He wanted to smack that cheeky sparkle Bellani’s eye, but she was right. “How do the Minish remember me when no other race does?”

Bellani hummed. “Well, for many Minish you have become little more than a boogeyman, something to tell troublesome children to behave at night. It helps we are more long lived than many of the natural races here in Hyrule. Your Master was still quite famous when I was young, though he had passed away only a couple hundred years before I was born more or less. We don’t get much contact from the Minish World anymore… it’s hard to say if anything of note has happened there since you came to Hyrule.” There was a hint of sadness in her voice as she spoke of the other world.

Vaati’s own mind was turning at such a rapid pace he almost felt dizzy. “Minish… World…” The place he had apparently been born. Where he grew up. Yet, when he tried to remember it was nothing more than fog. Fog in the shape of clovers.

The stairs opened up into a large space that Vaati soon realized were the wooden rafters above his room. He risked a glance down, seeing Ganondorf and Suri still turning the room upside down looking for him. He was relieved Ganondorf had yet to consider releasing the strength of the spell, the thought only now occurring to him what could have happened if he turned back into a Hylian while within those stone walls. With a shiver, he backed away from the edge, catching up to where Bellani had set up a little makeshift table and some tea.

He sat down on a thimble chair and looked around at all the small-scale furnishings. It was oddly cozy up here. Madam Bellani’s living space was nestled against the ceiling in a nook he never noticed when he was larger. There was even a tiny window and some sort of contraption that sort of looked like a complex telescope. Plastered on the wall beside the contraption was a hand drawn map of the stars.

“… I suppose you get a good view of the sky from up here?”

“Hmmhmm, that’s why I chose the tower. I am an astronomer, you see.” She poured a single drop of tea into a tiny hand carved cup. “Well, currently. I once wanted to be a great mage like Master Ezlo,” She sighed wistfully, “But I never could get the hang of it past basic spells. So instead I map the stars.”

“Huh…” Vaati took the cup. It smelled nice. Similar notes to the teas Suri had made him. “You said there is another world?”

“Oh, of course, you probably don’t remember much of it, hm?” Bellani tutted over her own tea, “There are many other worlds than just the Homeland. Some naturally grew alongside Hyrule, others have been created through magic interference.”

“Like the Dark World?” Vaati glanced up from his cup. It was the only other realm he had any experience in.

Bellani nodded, “That is one of them, though there are a couple worlds that have gone by that name over the years. All similar, yet different. The Minish World is one of the few connected to this one naturally. I would tell you more, but I am afraid I am descended from Hyrule Minish. I have never seen it in person.”

“Oh.” Vaati sipped at the tea in thought, trying to remember his foggy dreams. He looked down at his hand, slowly moving his fingers. “…Do all Minish look like you?”

He could feel Bellani’s eyes on him, but he didn’t look up. In every dream he could feel how different he was to everyone around him. How alienated he was. How angry it made him feel.

“As I had said before… No Minish in this world has coloring like you.” Her finger tapped her cup in thought. “From the stories about you I suspect there were none in the Minish World either.”

“That is… generally what I can remember.”

Bellani gave him a small smile. “It was always a curious detail to me, your appearance. I assume you don’t remember your parents.” Vaati shook his head. “Hm, yes…” She took a sip of her tea. “As I studied other worlds I often found myself wondering if you had perhaps not originally come from the Minish World, but had found yourself there as a child.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, obviously with no memory there is no way to confirm my hypothesis… but I had found your darker coloring more common in other worlds. Not for Minish, as far as I am aware. The documentation of other worlds is limited as it is. If the other worlds Minish work as we do, a child would have to document our existence. And no Hyrule scholar would preserve such documentation…” She mumbled to herself a little bit before shaking her head. “What I mean is, there are worlds where the humans themselves are already of darker color palettes. It wouldn’t be too far a reach to guess that perhaps their native Minish would also be darker.”

“And your hypothesis is…?”

“That perhaps you are either from or the child of a Minish from one of the other worlds. Perhaps Twilight, or Lorule.” She poured herself another cup of tea. “Lorule tends to favor purple, but Twilight is known for their red eyes.” She smiled apologetically, “Forgive me, it is not much more than a thought experiment on my part. It wouldn’t explain how you got to the Minish World either. But… I must say I’m more inclined to believe it than everyone’s claims that you were born tainted, or from a corrupted seed, or whatever else they babbled on about.”

The hair on his neck stood up, remembering the things he heard people say in his dreams.

“Even Minish tend to demonize things that are different. Every race fears things that differ from what they believe is the norm. The stories say you were drawn to the evil hearts of men because you were predisposition to, but I must say if the rumor mill was as extensive back then as it is today I can see how someone would be driven to it.”

Vaati stared at the old Minish, quietly sipping his tea. He frowned as her words poured over him, looking off to where he could see the blue sky beyond the tiny Minish window. “Hm. I think… you would be the first to think so.”

Bellani clicked her tongue, “Surely Master Ezlo didn-“ She paused as Vaati grew tense. “… I see.” She sighed, shaking her head, “You would know more than I.”

The silence grew heavy between them. Even without remembering much about his old teacher, he didn’t want to speak about him. No memory had a positive feeling to go with it. Only hurt and frustration. And anger… he could remember the anger.

After another quiet moment, Bellani set down her cup. “Well… I am always here if you wish to learn more about the Minish. Though it seems you would rather put this all behind you.”

“…” Vaati only barely relaxed when she changed the subject. “I don’t understand how you all live like this. So small… so… _vulnerable_.”

“We make do.”

“I hate it.”

Bellani chuckled. “Your ambitions are too large for such a small body, hm? We all have our own desires. If you found relief in discarding your Minish self, it is not my place to judge. Now at least your past is less of a mystery, hm? I had overheard that it was distressing from some of your previous conversations with the loud King.”

Vaati sighed, leaning on his paw. “I suppose. It is still a lot to take in…”

She hummed, nodding. “Such revelations take time for the mind to accept. Longer than you have time to chit chat with an old Minish like me. I think it is about time to let the ones below know you are okay, yes? You are always welcome to visit, though I doubt you will be able to see me in your Hylian form. I suspect you’ve grown much too old by now, hm?”

Vaati glanced at the edge of the rafters, nodding, “I don’t know how to get his attention, though.”

The old Picori smiled, a mischievous glint in her eye. “I have a way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to link this a while ago, [but here's some art of Suri I drew.](https://rastea.tumblr.com/post/632457109719613440/on-a-slightly-different-note-meet-suri-a-gerudo)


End file.
